Hen&#39;s nest



Aprilr8, 1924. 1,489,563

H. A. WAHLBORG HEN S NEST Filed Oct. 12 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 gmmkoz RH.Wa/a Zia/g- April 8, 1924.

I 1,489,563 H. A. WAHLBORG HENS NEST Filed Oct. 12 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet 5gwuzntoc T all whom it may concern:

Patented Apr. 8, 1924.

UNITED STATES HERMAN A. WAHLBORG, 0F ELLIS, KANSAS.

HENS unsr. V 1

Application filed October 12, 1922. Serial No. 594,060.

Be it known that I, HERMAN A. WAHL- BORG, citizen of the UnitedStates,residing at Ellis, in the county of Ellis'and State of'Kansas, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Hens Nests, of

which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to an improvement in nests for laying hensand the object of the invention is to provide a nest with a plurality ofcompartments, one for each hen and having a common receptacle for theeggs in which they collect immediately they have been laid in eachcompartment.

Another object of the invention is to con struct a hens nest in the formof a cabinet with suitable ventilation and individual doors for eachcompartment making it pos sible to close some of the compartments, whileothers are leftopen.

Still another object of the invention is to attach said-commonreceptacle to the cabinet in such a manner that it can easily be in-'spected without disturbing any of the hens and that this receptacle maybe emptied irrespective of the open or closed compartments of thecabinet.

In the accompanying drawings one embodiment of the invention isillustrated, and Fig. 1 shows a perspective View of a hens nest; I

thereof; V v

gig. 3 a section along line 33 of Fig. 2, an 7 Fig. 4: a perspectiveview of some of the details. r

In the drawings reference numeral 10 represents the side walls of a hensnest,

Y which is built in the shape of a cabinet;

reference numeral 11 is the rear wall and numeral 12 the front wallthereof. These walls are united in the usual manner as by riveting orsoldering at the four corners. The top edges of the walls are on onelevel and have a flanged band13 running along the four sides thereof.This flanged 'band has a Z-shaped cross section with an upright flangeset inward as regards the side, front and rear walls of the cabinet andproviding a seat as at 14 for the roof 15, which is removable, sothat'the inside o-fthe cabinet can easily be inspected and cleaned. 7

The roof 15 has a triangular shaped eave 16 at each end and longitudinalrunners 17 Fig. 2 a vertical longitudinal section at the front and rearrigidly'secured-as by riveting or soldering. These caves and runners areconnected with the forwardly in clined roof portion 18 and therearwardly inclined second roof portion 19. The second 7 roof portion iswider than the forward roof portion and projects a considerable distanceover the same as at 20 to'provide a drip edge. This projecting part ofthe rear roof portion 19 is supported by means of an upstanding wall 21rising from the forward roof portion 18 being rigidly connected to theprojecting portion 20 as at 22. At intervals there are formed smallwindows 23 in the upright 21 by slitting the latter and bending the lip24 formed in this manner and securing the latter to theunderside of therear roof portion 19 as at 25. In this manner the necessary ventilationfor the hens nest is pro-vided. At 26 are shown a pair of handles forlifting thefroof ofl the the cabinet. The runners 17 and the eaves 16are spaced sufiiciently apart to fit closely over the upright insideflange 13 at the top of the cabinet in this manner holding roof fromslipping off the latter.

The cabinetis firmly secured to a base 27, which is preferably formedout of angle .iron running along the back and'side wallsThe'middleportion of the front wall 12;

is cut away as at 29 fo'rthe' purpose of accommodating the receptaclefor theeggs. This receptacle consists of a drawer 30 having a handle 31in the middle thereof. A slanting bottom 32, which is higher at the rearend of the drawer, consists preferably of a sheet metal plate bentupwardly in the rear to form a rear wall 33 and in front to form a frontwall 34, which is accord ngly higher than'the rear wall 33, the topedges;

of both being at the same level. This botthe r H tom plate is preferablyflanged at the sides as'at 35 in Fig. 2 and united to the plate sides 36to complete the tray or drawer 30..

A pair'of angles 37 secured to'tlie rearwall 11 and base 27 form guidesfor the drawer 30 and extend some distance forwardly beyond the frontwall 12'of the cabinetin order to accommodatethe drawer 30, whichislonger than the distance between the front and rear walls of the cabinetas best seen in Figs. 1 and 3. The interior, that is to say, the bottomand sides as well as front and rear portions of the drawer 30 are alllined by some suitable padding 38 to prevent the breaking of the eggs,when theycollect in the drawer, the latter being longer, asalreadydescribed, than the cabinet. A lid 39 hinged as at 40- on the front wall12 is furnished to close the projecting partofthe drawer 30. This lid'39is preferablymade of sheet metal with depending flanges 41covering-partlythe sides of the drawer. and has a transparent centerportion 42 of glass or mica, so that the front end of the drawer may beinspected without lifting the lid or pullingout the drawer.

In the drawings the cabinet is shown with three compartments, but it isevident, that any number of such compartments may be provided accordingto the requirements and number of hens, for which it is intended to beused. These compartments are formed by internal partitions 43 runningbetween the front and rear walls of the cabinet and extendingup underthe roof as at 44 so as to completely divide thecompartments from eachother. These partitions 43 a1'c preferably made of. mesh fabric in orderto facilitatethe circulation'of air through the cabinet. Each of thesecompartmentshas a separate bottom 45 preferably made of sheetmetaland-firmly united to the walls of the cabinet as at 46 as well asto the partitions as at 47. Each bottom is made in the shape of aninverted pyramidic frustum, in the center of which is provided anaperture 48 of a size large enough to permit an egg to drop through thesame. This aperture is closed by'imeans of a shutter 49 havinga disk 50,a little: larger in diameter than the aperture 48 formedin each bottom45. This diskhas a hinge portion 52 suspended on a journal 53 in thehinge leaf 54 whichis se cured as at 55 on the underside of each bottom45. The free end of the arm 51' carries a weight 56 adapted to close theaperture 48 by swinging the disk 50 inposition under the same. Thisweight is so selected, that a slight pressure on the top :of the (USAwill swing the latter out of its closedposition; in this mannerdirect-lyan eggis laid in one of thecompartments, it will roll down theslopingsides of the bottom and disappear through the aperture 48 as itsweight will be sufficient to swing. the disk 50 ofthe shutter .49 out ofthe way. Each bottom 45 is lined with a padding-57 inv the same mannerasthe drawer 30 and he p ding 58.

Neartheaperture i48in the bottom of each compartment is. provided asmall studof the disk- 50also carries a pador spike 59 intended tocarrya dummy egg 60, which has a suitable socket for the spike 59. Inthis manner the dummy egg 60 will remain in position in the bottom 45and not roll down the inclined bottom or fall through the aperture 48.

Referring particularly to Fig. 2, a short chute 61 is provided under theaperture 48 of each of the side compartments. These chutes 61 are alsomadeofsheet metal and supported under theirresp'ective bottoms 45 as at62 and on the angle irons 37 as at 63. These chutes 61 are channelshaped and have an inclinedwbottom with its lowest point over the angleiron-37 the edge of which is cut away to the width of the chute, as isalso the side wall 36 of the tray to form an entrancev into the latter,see Figures 2 and 3. It will nowbe evident that an egg laid in one ofthesidenests will fallthroughthe aperture 48 thereof swinging theshutter 49. out of the way and drop onto the bottom of the chute 61,whereupon it will roll down the same passing through the side entranceof the guide angle 37 into theupper end of the tray or drawer 30. As thebottom of the tray is also inclinedinwar'dly, the'egg will continueitscourse until it reaches the frontwall of the tray or drawer 30. In orderto prevent the breaking of the. egg these chutes 61 are also padded-has.at 64 so that there is no chance of the eggs beingbroken because theyalways fall orroll on the soft padding provided for thisrpurpose- Themiddle compartment has no such chute. 61 as its-aperture 48 is situateddirectly above the rear end of the bottom of I the tray or drawer 30.

A door opening 65-.isfurnished for each compartment inthe-front wall 12of the cabinet and at the lower side of each opening. is a downwardlyswinging door. 66

hinged as at 67. Each door has a handle 68 of band=irou having a bottomarm 69 pro jecting at right angles from the doo1 66 when-the latter isclosed. This arm 69 serves as a support for the door, when the latter isopen as. seento the right of Fig. 1, so that it will form a landing forthe hen entering. or leaving one of the compartments. -A small latch: 70is. provided for.

each door, so that the'latter maybe closed when so desired.

The padding used in the nests may be made of any suitable. material suchas oilcloth, canvas, felt or manufactured straw,

the kindused inrthe manufacture of straw:

hats. Itisevidentthat besides this more or lessipermanent padding, loosestraw, or; ex.

net of sheetunetalasmhasbeen described above, itis evident that othermaterial such as wood-or artificialboard may be used or,

. WVhen these eggs are to be removed, all that is needed is to pull outthe drawer 30 by the handle 31 when they may easily be reached by hand.Directly these eggs have been removed from the drawer, the latter shouldbe returned into closed position in order to receive other eggs laid inthe nest.

When cleaning the cabinet, the drawer 3O should be removed entirely andthe door 66 opened and the roof 15 lifted off. The interior of thecabinet will in this manner be exposed and the underside thereof canalso be reached by tilting the cabinet backwards.

This cabinet also provides a safe-guard against rats, mice or otherunwelcome visitors, as there is no possibility for them to enter thecabinet, when the drawer and doors are closed and the roof in position.To make doubly sure, however, the ventilators 23 may be covered by wiremesh.

Some of the advantages in using this hens nest will here be enumerated.

As the eggs are carried into the common receptacle directly after beinglaid, they may be immediately collected, which insures the freshness ofthe eggs, particularly as they do not remain in the nest exposed to theheat from the body of the hens. For the same reason, the eggs will befound in a clean, unsoiled condition, which avoids the washing of thembefore marketing. This washing is a very tedious work and often causesthe breakage of some of the eggs.

This cabinet for laying hens is very economical, because all breakagecaused by the hens stepping on the eggs, is avoided. From actual test,it has been found that of 300 eggs laid in one of these cabinets, allwere collected unbroken, not one being cracked or soiled.

To summarize, it may accordingly be stated, that this cabinet producesfresh and clean eggs and is very economical, as it prevents loss fromthe breakage of the eggs and saves labor and time, as all cleaning andwashing is unnecessary.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. A hens nest in the form of a cabinet having side walls, front andrear walls, a detachable roof and a slanting bottom with an aperture inits lowest part, a balanced shutter for said aperture, a slidable drawerbeneath said aperture and protruding beyond said front wall, a suitablepadding provided for said bottom, shutter and drawer, said front wallhaving a door opening, a door hinged at the underside of said opening,adapted to furnish a landing when open, and a centrally located, flatfaced. handle constituting a support for said door in open position. p

2. A hens nest in the form of a cabinet having'side walls, front andrear walls, a detachable roof and a bottom with an aperture, a balancedshutter for said aperture, a slidable drawer beneath said aperture, a

suitable padding provided for said bottom,

shutter and drawer, said front wall having a door opening, a. doorhinged at the underside of said opening, adapted to furnish a I landingwhen open, a handle constitutinga support for said door in openposition, the length of said drawer being greater than the distancebetween the front and rear walls of the cabinet, whereby a portion ofthe drawer will protrude beyond the front wall when in closed position,and a transparent lid covering said protruding portion of the drawer. 11 V 3. A hens nest in the form of a cabinet having side walls, front andrear walls, a detachable roof, partitions connecting the front and rearwalls of the cabinet dividing the same into a plurality of compartments,a bottom for each compartment in the shape of an inverted pyramidicfrustum provided with a central aperture, a balanced shutter for eachaperture and a slidable drawer beneath said compartments and chutesleading from said apertures to said drawer.

4:. .A hens nest in the form of a cabinet having side walls, front andrear walls, a detachable roof, partitions connecting the front and rearwalls of the cabinet dividing the same into a plurality of compartments,

a bottom for each compartment in the shape of an inverted pyramidicfrustum provided with a central aperture, a balanced shutter for eachaperture and a slidable drawerbeneath said compartments, chutes leadingfrom said apertures to said drawer, the length of said drawer beinggreater than the distance between said front and rear walls of thecabinet, a transparent, lid hinged to said front wall and adapted tocover the exposed portion of the drawer. V

5. A hens nest in the form of a cabinet having side walls, front andrear walls, a

detachable roof, partitions connecting the front and rear walls of thecabinet dividing the same into a plurality of compartments, a bottom foreach compartment in the shape of an inverted pyramidic frustumprovidedwith a central aperture, a balanced shutter for each aperture, aslidable drawer beneath said compartments, chutes leading from saidapertures to said drawer, the length of said drawer being greater thanthe dislit) tance between said front and rearwalls of the cabinet, atransparentlid hinged to said front wall and adapted to cover theexposed portion of the drawer, and'guiding members for said drawersecured in the lower portion of the cabinet, and provided with entrancesregistering with. said chutes.

6. A hens nest in the formiof a cabinet having side walls, front andrear walls, a detachable root, partitions connecting the front and rearwalls of the cabinet dividing the same into a plurality ofcompartment-s, a bottom for each compartment in the shape of an invertedpyramidie frustum provided with a central aperture, a balanced shutterfor each aperture, a slidable drawer beneath said compartments, chutesleading from said apertures to said drawer, the length of said drawerbeing greater than the distance between said front and rear walls of thecabinet, atransparent lid hinged to said front wall and adapted to coverthe exposed portion of the drawer, guiding members for said drawersecured in the lower portion of the cabinet, and the toppart of saidwalls of the cabinet being provided with a rabbetfurnishing a seat forsaid roof.

7. Ahens nest init-he form of a cabinet having side walls, frontwandrearwalls, a detachable'roof; partitions connecting the frontand rearwalls" of the cabinet dividing the same into a plurality ofcompartments, a bottom for each compartment in the shape of an invertedpyramidic frustump-rovided with a central aperture, a balanced shutterfor each aperture; a slidable drawer beneath said compartments, chutesleading from said apertures to said drawer, the length of saiddrawervbeing greater than-the distaneebetween said front and rear wallsof the cabinet, a transparent lid hinged to said front wall and adaptedto cover' the ex-v posed POI'tlOH Of the, drawer, guiding'mem bers forsaid drawer: secured in the-lower portion of thecabinet and providedwith entrances registering with said chutes,rthe to-pjpart of said wallsof the cabinet being provided witha rabbet furnishing a. seat for said:roof, and ventilators being furnished insaid roof. 7

In testimony whereoli I aflix my signal ture.

HERMAN A. lVAH'LBORG; [1,. s.l.

